The Traveler: Mondstadt (Genshin Impact)

Chapter 35

- Irma -

"All that flailing around is only going to give you sore wrists."

"Shut up. At least I'm trying to get out of her. You're just sitting there."

Okay, let's try this one more time. I shoved my legs underneath me after a very great effort and then took a deep breath. One, two, three! I pulled forward with my upper body. As my legs firmed me onto the ground, the rest of me pushed upwards from the chains. There was a loud rattle of metal to metal followed by a gentle grinding.

I've been trying this for the past twenty minutes to no avail. I'm actually surprised that the guys on the lower floor below us haven't said anything. At first I could hear them arguing with each other to go see what was going on. After a while they gave up on that, fully leaning towards the idea that I was never going to get out of these damn chains.

I'm starting to think they're right.

"Shit!"

My wrists burned just like Ariana said they would. The center of spots around my wrist felt fuzzy with pain. I let out an annoyed huff then fell back down with my legs in front of me. How the hell were we supposed to get out of her?

We have to warn Lumine and the rest of Eula's team. Not to mention the other two things floating in my mind. They've probably contacted all the people they have stationed in the other nations to start some sort of plan. And they're heading forward the rest of Mondstadt.

What else could they've meant by "I've made them wait long enough"? Logically speaking if they were going to attack the rest of what was left of Mondstadt then they'd all be dead already. There would be no one else for me to protect but dead corpses. Still, I'd rather die trying to get out of here than admitting it to myself that there was no point at all. I also have hope that everyone at Musk Reef is okay.

I quietly watched the sunset from the top of the damn tower. If I were still alive on Earth, what would I be doing right now? If it was Tuesday or Wednesday, I'd be holed up in my room doing homework or playing Genshin on my computer. Alone. Always alone. Any other day I'd spend the morning laying in bed until I had to get ready for work. Then the hours would pass by behind a counter until I had to go home and repeat the process for the rest of my damn life.

Was it wrong of me to feel a sense of relief at the situation I was in? Compared to my life on Earth this felt...more like living. Even though I had been kidnapped and chained up underneath a dead body, at least I felt like I was alive. On a positive note at least I'm being grateful for what I have at the moment.

"Ariana...what did you do before you died?"
She didn't seem thrown off by the question at all, "To be honest, I don't remember anymore but I like to imagine I owned a smut filled bookstore on the end of a small town street. Preferably next to a coffee shop."

Pff. That totally sounded like something she'd do.

"I worked behind a Deli counter."

She winced, "Underpaid customer service, good thing you died, huh?"

I laughed softly, "Good thing I died..."

...

Tears started falling silently from my eyes. Saying that out loud made me realize how fucking messed up I am. To think I would prefer this than living a normal life. I know that it wasn't perfect but I had what I needed. So what if it was hard? So what if I felt like my existence was dragged forward out of fear of failure.

Some people live to make something of their lives while the rest of us live so we won't become homeless. Because that's what failure means these days. If you set yourself back even just a year or give yourself too big of goals, you'll be dragged down back to harsh reality. If you have no one to rely on, no one to help you pick yourself back up you'll find yourself sleeping in parking lots in cars that you can't afford to fix.